Skagway excursions opinion

[kkbrig]

I have a few possible itineraries picked out:

 

1-

7:30am-3:40pm- Yukon Expedition and White Pass Scenic Rail (bus up Klondike Hwy, stops at Caribou crossing for BBQ chicken lunch, Wildlife Museum, Dog Musher's village, then train from Fraser back to Skagway)

3:40-8pm free

 

2-

7:30am- 3:30pm- White Pass Bennett Lake Adventure (train to Fraser then Bennett Lake, Prospector's meal, explore Bennett, train to Caribou crossing, bus back via Klondike Hwy)

3:30-8pm- free

 

3-

8:45am-12:15pm- White pass rail and Klondike hwy (bus up to Fraser, train back):

1:30-7:45- Glacier Point Wilderness Safari (a cruise, rainforest hike, canoe near glacier)

 

4-

8:30am-10- Street car city tour;

11:30am-4:30pm- Glacier Lake Kayak, Scenic Rail, and Klondike Summit (train to Fraser, Bernard Lake Kayaking, bus back via Klondike hwy),

4:30-8- free

 

5-

10:15am-12:15pm- Ocean Raft Adventure

1:15pm- 2:45pm- street car city tour

4:30pm-7:30pm- White pass railway (train to Fraser and back)

 

Any opinions? I'm completely torn at this point because these all look attractive (I've weeded it down from my initial list of 13 possible excursions!!). I've tried reading reviews, but it seems everyone has liked the one they have done, so it's hard to compare. I suppose that really means that we will like whichever we choose! In Fairbanks, we will see some sled dogs with Mary Shields as well as gold panning at Gold dredge 8, which is why I picked some of these other experiences vs the dogs and gold ones.

 

Thanks for any guidance! I know that much of this is a matter of opinion, but there are some things that experience might see which I do not. For instance, in the glacier point wilderness safari, there is a 75 minute cruise to start and end it. Is this cruise in itself part of the attraction or just a lot of time to get to and from an excursion?

[Budget Queen]

I have a few possible itineraries picked out:

 

1-

7:30am-3:40pm- Yukon Expedition and White Pass Scenic Rail (bus up Klondike Hwy, stops at Caribou crossing for BBQ chicken lunch, Wildlife Museum, Dog Musher's village, then train from Fraser back to Skagway)

3:40-8pm free

 

2-

7:30am- 3:30pm- White Pass Bennett Lake Adventure (train to Fraser then Bennett Lake, Prospector's meal, explore Bennett, train to Caribou crossing, bus back via Klondike Hwy)

3:30-8pm- free

 

3-

8:45am-12:15pm- White pass rail and Klondike hwy (bus up to Fraser, train back):

1:30-7:45- Glacier Point Wilderness Safari (a cruise, rainforest hike, canoe near glacier)

 

4-

8:30am-10- Street car city tour;

11:30am-4:30pm- Glacier Lake Kayak, Scenic Rail, and Klondike Summit (train to Fraser, Bernard Lake Kayaking, bus back via Klondike hwy),

4:30-8- free

 

5-

10:15am-12:15pm- Ocean Raft Adventure

1:15pm- 2:45pm- street car city tour

4:30pm-7:30pm- White pass railway (train to Fraser and back)

 

Any opinions? I'm completely torn at this point because these all look attractive (I've weeded it down from my initial list of 13 possible excursions!!). I've tried reading reviews, but it seems everyone has liked the one they have done, so it's hard to compare. I suppose that really means that we will like whichever we choose! In Fairbanks, we will see some sled dogs with Mary Shields as well as gold panning at Gold dredge 8, which is why I picked some of these other experiences vs the dogs and gold ones.

 

Thanks for any guidance! I know that much of this is a matter of opinion, but there are some things that experience might see which I do not. For instance, in the glacier point wilderness safari, there is a 75 minute cruise to start and end it. Is this cruise in itself part of the attraction or just a lot of time to get to and from an excursion?

 

You have done your homework. :) And you have insight on reviews- most get rave reviews with sometimes "proclamations" , especially with few visits- that a particular tours is the "best" and a "must do". Problem is- in Alaska- there are a LOT in this category. I have been on some of your tours. As for the glacier point wilderness safari- your total time includes the transfer time.

[kkbrig]

Does that 75 minute x2 boat ride seem scenic and part of the fun, or does it seem like a long transfer time. Because the actual time hiking and canoeing is not that long, comparatively! But if that boat time is part of the fun, I think that one might sound ideal to me.

 

 

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[sherryf]

I've done #1 and #2, as well as the round trip train. I like the Lake Bennett tour the best of all of them.

 

I don't tend to do "city tours" and Skagway isn't really big enough to need a tour. I prefer to do some reading about the sights and wander around to see them myself.

 

I keep reading rave reviews of the Ocean Raft Adventure, and it's on my bucket list, but I haven't done it yet.

 

Some of your options cram a lot into one day. For example, with #5, I would drop the city tour and use the time to look around town on my own and get lunch somewhere in town.

[Budget Queen]

Does that 75 minute x2 boat ride seem scenic and part of the fun, or does it seem like a long transfer time. Because the actual time hiking and canoeing is not that long, comparatively! But if that boat time is part of the fun, I think that one might sound ideal to me.

 

 

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You're going back and forth the Lynn Canal, same route as your cruise ship. It is scenic.

[kennicott]

I'm a sucker for the White Pass summit excursion, Mike Heney's (The Irish Prince) first railroad up here, "Give my enough dynamite and snoose and I will build a railroad to hell".

 

--I prefer R/T on the train and forget the bus. Best to go on to Fraser Meadows but they only do that Monday, Thursday and Friday. I would take the morning departure and tour Skagway myself in the afternoon. Be sure and do their museum. Tour Duration: 4 Hours on the train.

 

"This 54 mile round trip climbs from tidewater at Skagway past the White Pass Summit to Fraser Meadows. The fully narrated tour passes through two tunnels, over sky-high trestles and cascading waterfalls, all while being pulled by one of our historic steam locomotives.

 

Departure Times: Thursdays & Fridays at 12:00 PM

Monday departure times vary:

8:00 AM Departure: May 25; June 8, 22; July 6, 27; August 10, 24; September 7

12:00 PM Departure: June 1, 15, 29; July 20; August 3, 17, 31; September 14"

 

If that doesn't work for you would this would be my next bet:

 

"Travel 67.5 miles by train between Skagway, AK, and Carcross, YT, along the same route that the Klondike stampeders traversed in 1898! Couple that with a motorcoach tour along the scenic Klondike Highway to/from Skagway for the perfect combination of your Yukon & Alaskan holiday adventures. Along the rail route, enjoy a stop for lunch at our restored 1903 Bennett Station House for a piping hot & hearty meal! Bennett, BC, is accessible only via the White Pass train or by hiking the world famous Chilkoot Trail, making your day trip from Skagway a very exclusive and completely unique experience. This 8 hour, 120 mile round trip excursion features a one hour and fifteen minute layover at Bennett offers passengers a piping hot meal and a self-guided walking tour of the historic gold rush town-site. At the end of the layover passengers will re-board the train and resume their railroading adventure."

 

Departure Days & Times:

7:30 AM Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, & Friday

8:30 AM Saturday

On Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, & Friday, the tour operates train leg first with bus leg second. On Saturday, the tour operates bus leg first with train leg second.

[LoisLane0]

--I prefer R/T on the train and forget the bus. Best to go on to Fraser Meadows but they only do that Monday, Thursday and Friday. I would take the morning departure and tour Skagway myself in the afternoon. Be sure and do their museum. Tour Duration: 4 Hours on the train.

 

I'm not the OP but this is good to know. Thanks. I booked the 8 am cruise ship R/T train excursion because we have non refundable OBC. I was thinking on similar lines, get back to the ship by noon, eat and then walk around the town with our trusty map.

[peety3]

I know that much of this is a matter of opinion, but there are some things that experience might see which I do not. For instance, in the glacier point wilderness safari, there is a 75 minute cruise to start and end it. Is this cruise in itself part of the attraction or just a lot of time to get to and from an excursion?

 

For what it's worth, we did the Haines River Wilderness Adventure (or something like that). I call it the "planes, trains, and automobiles" excursion, as we:

 

1) Got off the ship and found the agent with the designated sign, and waited on the sidewalk for 15 minutes.

2) Boarded the Skagway-Haines ferry and had a 45 minute ferry ride to Haines.

3) Boarded a school bus for a 30 minute bus ride to the excursion.

4) Boarded a boat that had six bench seats wide enough for four adults each, and sat there for 1.25 hours while the captain/guide took us around the always-changing river, pointing out wildlife and unfortunately repeating that the river was a foot lower than the day before so he was working hard to keep the boat from getting stuck...

5) Ate a rushed lunch, as the 30 minutes allotted for lunch had shrunk a bit due to delays on the river.

6) Climbed back aboard the bus for a hurried 30 minute drive to catch the ferry.

7) Had a boring 45-minute ferry ride back to Skagway.

 

The excursion was by no means "bad", but it sticks out as the #1 worst excursion I/we've had across our four Alaska cruises. [Our #2 was a whale watch and salmon bake, which was aboard a boat for ~40 people that was nowhere near as ideal for whale watching and photography as the Gastineau Guiding boats that we'd been on previously (and went back to on subsequent cruises).]

[Alaskanb]

If you are interested in the history of this area I highly recommend this book http://www.amazon.com/Klondike-Last-Great-Gold-1896-1899/dp/0385658443

It puts the entire rail trip into context.